In news that was as surprising to the players and people involved as it was to those who watched it, the Championship Gaming Series closed its doors hours ago, citing economic reasons. While eSports leagues have been suffering this year, the closure of the CGS came out of left field; talking with a few of the players involved, they didn’t find out the source of their paycheck was gone until a minute before the official website posted a gigantic letter on the landing page.
Here’s the entirety of the out-of-business posting:
AN IDEA WHOSE TIME CAME TOO EARLY
Today BSkyB, STAR and DIRECTV ended their Championship Gaming Series® (CGS) business.
While the concept was ahead of its time and we are extremely proud of what we’ve accomplished, it became increasingly clear as this ambitious project evolved, that profitability was too far in the future for us to sustain operations in the interim.
Our goal was to be ahead of the curve in the e-sports space, and we conceived of CGS as a true sports league. We invested wholeheartedly in the venture and presented viewers with a top-notch production, but the economics just didn’t add up for us at this time.
Our only regret is that we will lose a team of creative and talented individuals who invested their hearts and souls into Championship Gaming Series. We recognize their achievements and thank them for their hard work and passion.
BSkyB, STAR and DIRECTV continue to be committed to the video games sector, which is an important part of many of our customers’ lives and a great source of entertainment.
Sincerely,
The CGS team
Was the CGS truly "an idea whose time came too early”? It’s tough to say. Things could have gone very differently with only a few changes; for example, if they started in a smaller American market and then expanded worldwide as eSports gained a foothold in the US.
In all honesty, though, I just don’t see gaming ever becoming a “sport” in the eyes of the general public. Could the CGS have been more successful financially? Probably. Unfortunately for those who poured their heart and souls into it (and those who quit their jobs to dedicate their lives to the circuit), the organization tried to sprint before it learned to crawl, and as the old saying goes, it just bit off more than it could chew. Now, if every sports fan in the world was forced to read Game Boys and could see just how sports-like professional gaming could be...
On the bright side, maybe now that 13-year-old living in the apartment upstairs who spends all of his time training to become a professional video game player will start doing something more productive. Then again, he still has MLG -- so don't go to school quite yet, Kevin.
November 19th, 2008 at 1:25 pm
Ah, sad news. I never really watched CGS (I considered it way too overblown and presented) but I had still hoped professional gaming could at least survive. With CGS and CPL both closing, I don't know if it will.
November 19th, 2008 at 4:28 pm
Awww. Memories.
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